2022 World Series Game 3: Houston Astros v. Philadelphia Phillies
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Good morning to everyone but especially to...

THE PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES

The Philadelphia Phillies are two games away from a World Series title. They're making plenty of history along the way so far, as last night they hammered five home runs in a 7-0 Game 3 domination of the Astros. Those five home runs they hit are a big deal:

The win tilts the series in Philadelphia's favor, two games to one.

The Phillies are resembling another great underdog story from the City of Brotherly Love, pens MLB reporter Matt Snyder.

  • Snyder: "The flawed underdog is standing toe to toe with the titan. In Philadelphia. Hmmmm. Sounds like Rocky Balboa, no? The quintessential Philadelphia underdog story. He didn't win the title until Rocky II, of course, but maybe, just maybe, these flawed underdogs are here to finish the job in their first try."

Honorable mentions

And not such a good morning for...

THE MICHIGAN WOLVERINES AND THE TCU HORNED FROGS

The first College Football Playoff rankings of the season have arrived, and if you feel like you have more questions than answers, you're not alone. Take a look:

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Tennessee on top is a testament to the Volunteers' outstanding work so far, and they have a massive game against Georgia this weekend. Clemson being ahead of Michigan, though, is a strange one, writes our college football reporter Barrett Sallee.

  • Sallee: "Clemson got in the top four because of its history of success in the CFP era. In reality, it's impossible to trust this team through the eight-game sample. ...  [Michigan] has a much better win than Clemson, too. The Wolverines dominated No. 15 Penn State 41-17 on Oct. 15, which is far more impressive than anything that Clemson has done."

TCU fans may be upset with the undefeated Horned Frogs behind one-loss Alabama, but Barrett breaks down why that's appropriate... for now.

Not so honorable mentions

  • Four more Michigan State players got suspended for their scuffle against Michigan.
  • The Seahawks cut Sidney Jones.

More Nets drama: Steve Nash is out; Ime Udoka leading candidate to be next coach 🏀

NBA: Preseason-Brooklyn Nets at Minnesota Timberwolves
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The Nets and head coach Steve Nash mutually agreed to part ways on Tuesday. It took almost no time at all for Brooklyn to identify the leading candidate to take over, and get this: it's Celtics head coach Ime Udoka, who is currently suspended for the entire 2022-23 season for having an improper relationship with a team staff member.

Jacque Vaughn is the current Nets coach on an interim basis.

We'll circle back on Udoka and the Celtics in a second, but let's start with Nash, who finishes 94-67 in just over two seasons with the Nets, including a 2-5 start to this season that likely sealed his fate.

  • The Nets came within one game of the Eastern Conference Finals in 2020-21, Nash's first season. Brooklyn lost to eventual NBA champion Milwaukee in seven games.
  • Things began to fall apart last season, with injuries, Kyrie Irving missing time due to his vaccination status and James Harden being dealt halfway through the season. The key return piece in that trade, Ben Simmons never played, and Udoka's Celtics swept the Nets in the first round.
  • Simmons finally made his Nets debut this season but has struggled, Brooklyn's defense has been awful and Irving's off-court distractions persist.

Nash -- a first-time head coach -- was given an extremely talented but extremely disjoined group of players -- one that rarely felt like a true team with any semblance of leadership. That won't magically change, even with Nash gone, writes NBA columnist Bill Reiter.

  • Reiter: "The only thing that's certain about Nash's tenure in Brooklyn is that it was destined to fail. ... Their loudest voice promotes antisemitic garbage, seems unable to accept the words 'I was wrong' and is a wonderful basketball player whose returns on investment have always come back -- without LeBron James as a teammate -- in the red. Their most important voice ... [has] tread so heavily on Nash, [GM Sean] Marks and anyone who dared question him that pettiness has often overshadowed his incredible game and often thoughtful and interesting worldview."

OK, now back to Udoka...

  • He led the Celtics to an NBA Finals appearance last season, his first as a head coach. He had been an assistant in Brooklyn the season before.
  • In September, the Celtics suspended him after initially believing his relationship with a woman on the team staff was consensual. But the woman accused Udoka of making unwanted comments toward her, which prompted an investigation and subsequent suspension.
  • Now, just a few weeks into that suspension, Udoka appears to be on track for another head-coaching gig in a move few could have expected. The Celtics will allow Udoka to leave, should the Nets go that route.

NFL Trade Deadline Day features 10 trades, including one huge surprise 🏈

There were hints that this could be a busy NFL trade deadline. We had no clue it would get this busy. Ten different trades went down on Tuesday alone, the most on any single day since at least 1990.

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As for Tuesday alone, the biggest deal was the Dolphins getting Bradley Chubb from the Broncos in a blockbuster.

Dolphins get:

  • OLB Bradley Chubb
  • 2025 fifth-round pick

Broncos get:

  • 2023 first-round pick
  • 2024 fourth-round pick
  • RB Chase Edmonds

Chubb is set to hit free agency this offseason, though Miami plans to work out a contract extension before that. The 26-year-old former NC State star fills a huge need for Miami: He has 5.5 sacks this season, while the Dolphins have just 15 as a team. The Dolphins earned a "B" for the trade according to NFL expert Josh Edwards, and here's Doug Clawson's look at exactly what Chubb brings.

This move -- plus getting Jeff Wilson from the 49ers to help replace Edmonds -- made the Dolphins one of the biggest winners of trade deadline day, writes NFL reporter Bryan DeArdo. As for long-term ramifications from all the moves that went down, Calvin Ridley heading from the Falcons to the Jaguars wasn't just the most surprising trade of the day, but one of the most surprising trades in recent memory.

  • Ridley is suspended for at least this season for betting on NFL games last year while away from the team. He can apply for reinstatement in February. Naturally, that makes the compensation quite complicated.
  • If Ridley is reinstated by a certain date, Atlanta will receive a 2023 fifth-round pick. If he is not reinstated by the date, it's a 2023 sixth-round pick.
  • Then, if Ridley makes the team in 2024, the Falcons will receive a fourth-round pick. If he hits a playing-time milestone, it's a third-round pick. If the Jaguars get a long-term deal done with Ridley, the pick turns into a second-rounder.

The Jaguars received a strong grade for the move, but given all the unknowns, it will take a while until we can truly assess.

As for everything you need to know from the big day.

NFL Power Rankings: Pair of NFC West teams enter Top 10 🏈

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We're nearing the halfway point of the NFL season, and we seemingly have a clear-cut upper tier of teams -- at least in our NFL senior writer Pete Prisco's eyes. The top four of Pete's Power Rankings remained the exact same as last week. Here's the top five.

  • 1. Eagles
  • 2. Bills
  • 3. Chiefs
  • 4. Vikings
  • 5. Cowboys (prev. 6)

Expand your sights to the top 10, and you'll see a pair of NFC West teams -- the Seahawks (from 12 to 9) and the 49ers (from 15 to 10) -- moving in after impressive wins. You can check out the entire Power Rankings here.

What we're watching Wednesday 📺

UEFA Champions League, 1:45 p.m. and 4 p.m. on Paramount+
🏈 Central Michigan at Northern Illinois, 7 p.m. on ESPNU
🏈 Western Michigan at Bowling Green, 7 p.m. on ESPN2
🏀 Celtics at Cavaliers, 7:30 p.m. on ESPN
🏒 Penguins at Sabres, 7:30 p.m. on TNT
Astros at Phillies, 8:03 p.m. on FOX
🏀 Grizzlies at Trail Blazers, 10 p.m. on ESPN